Making pinatas (pin-YAH-tuzz) from paper mache (muh-SHAY) can make a mess, but they're a fun project. To create one, you'll need shapes to use as it's skeleton. A horse is an easy shape created with a medium sized balloon for the body and the paper towel rolls for legs. You can use a small balloon for the head, or a small frozen juice cylinder. You can use masking tape to join the elements of the body. To begin, have the children cut strips of newspaper about an inch wide, and up to twelve inches long. Next, let them dip the strips of paper into a plate of paste, then layer on the frame of the sculpture. Cover it completely except for a hole 3 inches in diameter on the top of the horse's torso. When the pinata is complete, you can add the candy. Once the layering is complete, allow the project to dry for a day or two, in a moisture-free, well-ventilated area. The final step is adding the color to the paper mache creation. You can help them do this with poster paint, or by gluing scraps of colored tissue paper on it. While paper mache projects can be time consuming and messy, they're simple to do, and most children enjoy making them.
©2004 Bluestreak Media. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
